Research of Vincent Lamers and Carolien Hermans

Multimodality is taken to mean the information that is used by the specialist teacher on the basis of different sensory modalities (such as gestures, movements of the entire body, speech, image, sound and use of materials). This is not only about using different senses, such as hearing, touch, sight, smell, taste and proprioception, but above all about the way in which the senses are connected and integrated with each other with the aim being to strengthen the musical interaction process for children with a disability (Hull & Nelson, 2005).

As yet, explicit practical knowledge and practical research in the field of multimodal pedagogy in music education to children with a disability is lacking. There is, however, a growing number of specialist music teachers who give musical perception lessons in special education. These musical perception lessons appear to make intuitive use of multimodality. In this research, the implicit practical knowledge is made explicit and connected with current theories about multimodal pedagogy.

Bremmer, M., Hermans, C., & Lamers, V. (2021). The charmed dyad: Multimodal music lessons for pupils with severe or multiple disabilities. Research Studies in Music Education.

Carolien Hermans completed the study Educational Therapy (cum laude) at Radboud University in Nijmegen and worked there as a junior lecturer and researcher for four years. She did the Master’s programme in Choreography at the Amsterdam University of the Arts (AHK), specialisation New Media (2004). She has been doing doctoral research into dance education for special target groups in the Arts Education Research Group since January 2010.  Carolien Hermans is a teacher at the Music in Education study programme of the Conservatorium van Amsterdam. She is also research lecturer at the Faculty of Art and Economics, HKU (University of the Arts Utrecht).

- Lamers, V., Hermans, C., & Bremmer, M. (2018). De multimodale muziekbubbel. Muzieklessen in het speciaal onderwijs aan leerlingen met een ernstige beperking. Amsterdam, NL: Lectoraat kunsteducatie, Amsterdamse Hogeschool voor de Kunsten. 
- Hermans, C. (2017). Autistische kinderen leren communiceren door dans. Kunstzone (juli, 4), 48¬49.